Vehicle-wheel.



N0.857'.21'9. PATENTED JHNE 18, 19017.

J. E. WELCH.

VEHICLE WHEEL.l APPLICATION FILED JN. 20, 1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 1v.

` PATENTED JUNE 18, 1907. J. R. WELCH.

Q VEHICLE WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 20, 1908.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNlTnD STATES PATENT onirica;

Application iiled January-20, 1906. Serial No. 296,966.

To t/ whom it Dirty concern.'

Be it known that I, JOHN R. WELoii,re siding at Alexandria, 1n the co'untyof Madison and State of Indiana, have invented a .certain new and useful Improvement in V e" hicle-Wheels, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, referencebeing had to the accompanying drawings.

My invention relates to vehicle wheels in general, but more especially to Vwheels for automobiles, and has forits object to ro" vide a wheel or novel construction where y a tire other than a pneumatic tire may be employed without the sacrifice of theresiliency and ease of vriding which are characteristic of the latter' tire. 2

Generally speaking, vthe invention may be defined as .consisting of the .combinatior-1s-of`V ele-ments embodied in the .claims hereto lannexed. f

Referring to the drawingsz-Figure 1 represents lan elevation of a vehicle wheel constructed in accordance with my invention,

theouter face plate'being broken awayl to illustrate the manner in which the spokes are secured in place; Flg. 2 represents an en-` largedsectional view taken on the line 2-2 `of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 represents a front 'elevation of the hub, the frontplate and dust cap-being removed and certain parts of the spokes bemg representedin dottedlines Fig. 4 represents la side elevation of the hub shown in Fig. .3; and Fig.-l 5. represents an enlarged sectional detail of the tire and rim. j

The wheel comprises the hub 1, rim 2, tire 3 Y and spokes 4 extending between said hub and,

rim.

As will a ear from the drawings,"par ticularly'from. ig. 5, the tire which I' preferably em loy is a solid rubber'tire and, in.

order .to o tain the 'requisite resiliency, Iin- Ater ose between the tire and the .hub thel spo es 4 which are preferably/'of s ring steel, and are -reversely curved, the spo es resernbling in general 'outline the letter S. With each of these spokes, I employan inner'leaf spring`,5 and an outer leaf spring 6, the former engaging the convex 'surface of theinner curved portion of thespoke 4 and the latter engaging the convex surface ofthe outer curved portion of said spoke. The springs 5 and 6 are given ay curvature slightly greater thanl that of the corresponding surfaces of the spokes 4 which they-engage, whereby said springsre'sist the yielding ofthe spokes under compression. T lie outer end of ai sprlng 5 is nearly opposite' the inner end 4of a Specification lof Letters Patent.

4 able numberldepen Patentea .time 1s, :1907;- v

spring 6, the portion of the lspoke :4 intermel Adi'ate' between such extremities of. the sprlngs being thickened,as appears 1n Fig. 1, ,6

to compensate for the lack ofreinforc'ement at this point.

To accommodate the inner ends ofthe spokes '4 and rings 5, I provide a special Aconstruction o ahub. This hub comprises 'the inner casting or barrel v7, provided with a' central bore Sfor application to the spindles of vehicle axles.`^ In the case of an automobile, the hubs of the rear or drive Wheels'will l' beeach provided witha keyway 9, whereby j jecting outwardly a considerable" distance .provided with a flange or face plate 1 1`profrom the central portionof the hub, the end of theplate beingbent at right angles to the The barbody thereof, to form a flange 12. rel of the hubcastin is provided with a suiting upon the number of spokes to be used) of radially extending ribs 13. As'will appear more particularly from Figs. 2 and 4, these ribsproject a relatively short distance from the central portion ofthe 4barrel of the hub castingto receive between them the inner ends 14 of the: springs 5. At

itsbase yeach rib is extended by means` of a boss '15, preferably integraLwith the rib and -the plate 11. One face 16 of each rib V13 and bossv 15 is straight or plane and is in the plane of a radius drawn from the center of the hub, as will appear more particularly from Fig. 8.

y The reverse face .17 of each rib 13 and boss 15 is also straight for a portionof itslength, but is substantially parallel with the adjacent radial .face 16 ofthe next rib. Atits cuter portion, the boss 15 is curved,l at 18 toward the face `1`6and said faces 16 and 18 are united by a concave face' 19, the curvature of which corresponds to an arc described from the centerof the pivot pin 2O.l This pivot pin 20 is for the innerend of a spoke 4, and will be described hereinafter morefully in connectionA IOO therewith. 4 Outside of the ribs 1 3, the hub bar;

rel Vprovided with a short circular iian'ge 21. 22 designates' a sleeve of a size to be slipped over the outer'- end of the hub casting, its

outer end fitting closely around the enlarged' outer'end 23 of said casting and its inner end being enlarged to slip over the' circular flange 21. Preferablv integral with said lsleeve 22 is a iiange or face plate 24 corresponding to faces 20b for the purpose of the plate 1'1 on the hub and having an inturned end flange 25 corres on'ding to the flange l2. The inner face o' the plate 24 is provided with bosses 26, corresponding 'in shape, size,- the hub 'flange 11.

27 designates a dust cap which may be threaded vonto the outer end 23 of the hub casting.

The inner end of each spoke is enlarged into a cylindrical hub 28 adapted to be tted over a'pin 20, a bushing 29 being provided The inner ends' between said pin and hub. of the springs 5 are so shaped as to be 4inserted between adjacent ribs 13 and bosses 15, being concaved or rounded out at 30 and 31 to engage the inner cylindrical ends of the adjacent spokes, and the flanges l21and 25 are provided with recesses'for the reception of the spokes 4 and springs 5. The recesses in the flange .12 are shown at 32, Figs. 3 and 4, and said recesses are enlarged inwardly and are rounded, as shown more particularly in Figs. 1 and 3, to correspond to the contour of the adjacent faces of the spokes 4 and springs 5. As the recesses in the flange 25'are identical in construction with those in the flange 1'2, no view of the latter will'be necessary other than Fig. A1.

In assembling, the pins 2O are ad'usted so. that the inner shoulders 20a thereof will engage the inner face of the plate 1,1, said pins being provided with wrench-receiving surso adjusting them'. The inner ends ofthe spokes are applied to the pivot pins and the springs 5 are inserted in place, after which the sleeve 22 and plate 2,4 are slippedover the end of the hub casting with the bosses 26 opposite the bosses 15, and the nuts 20C are then tightened to draw the parts 11 and 24 together. The length of .the flanges 12 and 25- and ribs 13 and thewidth'of the inner ends of the spokes 4 and springs 5 are such that, when thevnuts 2On are tightened, the flanges 12 and 25 are in contact and the inner ends of the/springs are engaged. by the ribs 13 and bosses 15 and 26. As will appear more particularly from ig. 1; the inner portion of each spring 5 is rounded o'r concaved at 33 and 34 to en and conform to the cylindrical` inner en s of .the spokes 4 between which each of said springs is inserted.-

The form of rim which I preferably employ with my'wheel is shown in Figs. 2 and 5 and f consists enerally of an inner rim portion34a, preferab y of steel, and a pair of detachable side flanges 35 of the same material. The

, inner rim member and the flanges are conveniently assembled by providing the Vouter face of the former with anvangular recess 36 at a short distance within each outer edge thereof, said recess being adapted to receive a corresponding angular projection 37 on the and position to the bosses 15 on vspokes 4 and-springs 5`and 6. shape of the spokes contributes inner surface of the flange.- The member .r

sur/2197 34a and flanges 35 are secured together, as by l 'continuous unbroken convex exterior surface.

To secure the tire in placefon the rim, I may embed within the former a series of plates 39 each having one or more central projections 40 for the reception of a screw bolt 41whereby the tire maybe firmly secured to the rim.' In the case of a tire having wires 42 therein, the plates will be rovided with corres ondinggrooves 43 lfor t e reception. of suc wires. 4 the wires by 'the lates, the tightening of the' screw bolts 41 wi l more effectively secure the tire to the rim'. v

Inl Figs. 1 and 2, there is shown the manner ef securing the spokes tothe rim. The inner ,member of the rim provided with upwardly extending sidedlan'ges 44'. The

lower ends of the springs are flattened, bein given a curvature correspondingto that o the inner face of the rim member 34a to provide an elongated vbearing thereon, andthe extreme end of each spring is turned upwardly at 45 to provide a stop or abutment for the end of the spoke 4, the lower portion ofthe spokebeing also `curved to form an-ex tended bearing on the lower end portion of the spring 6. Screw bolts 47 secure the lower ends of the springs and spokes together and to the rim.

The result of the construction hereinbefore described is to increase the resiliency of the solid rubber'tire by the vresiliency of the The peculiar to thisresult, while the provision of the springs 5 and 6, which are soshapedvas to resist sion' of .the spokes, provides a construction By the engagement of which will, for aminimum Weight of material, secure the necessary resiliency with out too lmuch distortion of the Wheel and rim. The providing of the rounded surfaces 33 and 34 on the inner spring members permits al slight rotation of the spokes on their pivots, thereby obviating the danger of breaking the spokes when the tire strikes an obstruction Furthermore, the construction of the hub' and ofthe rim permits' of therapid assembling ofthe wheel. .f

It will be obvious that numerous changes may be made in the details of the embodiment of my invention herein disclosed without departing from the spirit of theinvention.

For instance, the portions f' the hub which are formed integral with each other may be made separable without sacrificing all of the advantages of the invention, and numerous other changes will suggest themselves to the skilled mechanic. I therefore donot propose to limit myself to suchdetails of con- I-IO and a leaf spring for each of said spokes, each struction except as the-same maybe included in the claims hereto annexed or rendered necessary by the prior state of the art.

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is 1. In a vehicle wheel, the combination of a hubvand a rim, a series of spokes having their inner ends operatively connected to said hub and their outer ends curved toward said rim,

vof said springs being adapted to` engage and reinforce the convex surfaces of said spoke, substantially as speciiied.- v

'3. In a vehicle wheel, the combination of a rim and a hub, spokes operatively connected to said hub and rim, each of said spokes havingits inner portion curved in one direction and its outer portion curved in theropposite direction, a leafl spring operatively connected to the hub and engaging the adjacent inner convex'surface of the spoke, and a spring operatively secured tothe rim and engaging the adjacent outer convex surface of said spoke, substantially as specified.

4. In a vehicle wheel, the combination of a hub and a rii'n, spokes operatively connecting said hub andrim, each of said spokes l,having an inner curved portion and a reversely curved outer portion, and a pair of curved springs for each of 'said spokes, one spring being secured to the hub and the other tothe rim, the spoke having .its intermediate un- 45.

reinforced portion of greater cross-sectional area thanthe other portions thereof, substantially as specified.

` 5. In a vehicle wheel, the'combination of a rim and a hub, saidhub having'a series of ribs projecting radially therefrom, spokes having their outer ends operatively connectedI to said rim and their inner ends operatively connected to said hub, .and reinforcing springs for the inner portions of said spokes,

each of said springs having an inner end adapted to iit between appairv of said ribs, substantially as specified.'

6. In a vehicle wheel, the combination of a rim and a hub, the hub being provided with a series of ribs projecting from the barrel thereof, of a series of resilient spokes operatively connecting said rimv andhub, and a seriesof reinforcing springs for the inner portions of said spokes, each of said springs being-provided with an inner portion adapted to it between a pair of said ribs and an exterior portion adapted to engage and reinforce the spoke, substantially as specified.

p 7. In a vehicle wheel, the combination of a rim and a hub, spokes operatively connecting said rim and hub7 each of said spokes being provided with a curved portion adjacentv to'` the inner end thereof, ribs .projecting outwardly from the barrel ofthe hub, and a series of reinforcing springs having their inner ends iitted between said ribs and each having a curved portion adapted to engage and reinforce the inner curved portionof a spoke, substantially as specified.

8. In ayvehicle wheel, the combination of a rim and a hub, said hub being provided with ribs projectingoutwardly from the barrel thereof, a-plurality of resilient vspokes oper-. atively connecting said rim and hub, the inner end portions of said spokes lbeing curved and being connected to said hub beyond the outer ends of said ribs, and reinforcin springs having their inner ends iitted between said ribs and their outer vportions curved'to engage and reinforce the inner curved portions of said spokes', substantially as specified.

9. .In a vehicle wheel, the combination of a hub and arim, of aseries of spokes having their inner ends curved and provided with lcylindrical bearings, pivots for said bearings carried by said hub, anda series of reinforcing springs having their inner ends projecting inwardly beyond said bearings, each of said springs being provided with concave portions adapted to engage said bearings and loo with an outer 'curved portion adapted 4to en- .gage the'correspondingly curved inner por-4 tion of a spoke to reinforce the same, substantially as speeiiied.

arim'and a hub,'said hub being provided with o .positely-located face plates anda flange ocated between said'face plates and provided with recesses for the reception of the inner ends of the spokes7 the opposite walls of each of said-recesses divergl'ng inwardly, spokes operatively connecting said hub and rim and having 'their' inner ends curved and connected `to said lhub between the recesses, and' a reinforcing spring foreach of said spokeshaving its inner .end secured -tothe hub andits outer end projecting throughv a recessand engaging the convex curved surface of a spoke, substantially as specified.

11. In a vehicle wheel, the combination of a rim and a hub, said hub comprising oppositely-loca'ted face plates and flanges extend- 10s 10. In a vehicle wheel, the combination ofing between said face platesV and 'provided' with recesses for the reception of the inner ends of the spokes,-p-insextending betweenl ysaid plates between said recesses, spokes havingtheir outer ends operatively connectedto said rim and their inner ends c urved and provided withcylindrical bearings for said pins,

a reinforcing spring for the inner curved portion of each of said spokes, said spring being provided with concave surfaces adapted Ito fit the cylindrical bearings of adjacent spokes and also having a curved outerportion for engagement with the corresponding curved portion of a spoke,l the width of each of said recesses being slightly greater than the combined widths of the adjacent portions of a spring and spoke, substantiallyas specified.

12. In a vehicle wheel, the combination of a rim and a hub. said hub comprising oppositelylocated face lates and flanges extending .between said ace plates and rovided with recesses for the reception of t e inner ends of the-spokes, the opposite wallsof each recess diverging inwardly, pins extending vbe'- tween said plates between said recesses, spokes having their outer ends 'operatively connected to said rim and their inner endsl curved and provided withV cylindrical bearlings -for said pins, a reinforcing sprin for the inner curved portion of each spo e, said: sprmg being provided with' concave surfaces adapted to fit the cylindrical bearings-of adjacent spokes and also having a curved outer portion for engagement with the -corresponding curved portion of a spoke, the width-of each recess bein .greater-than the combined widths of the a jacent portions of a spring and spoke, substantially as specified. 'i

I13. -In a vehicle Wheel, thecombination of a hub'and a rirn, said hub comprising a fixed and a removable face plate, ribs projecting' outwardlyvfrom the barrel of .the hub, sai

.ribs being of a len thgtol space said face platesapart'and eac ofsaidribs being proa hub and a-;rim, said-hub comprising a fixed and a removable face plata-spokes o `eratively connected to said-'face plates an :said rim, ribs rojecti 'outwardly frolnthe barrel of the ub, 'the' en th of said ribsbeingas great as the Width o? the 'inner ends ofthe spokes, kbosses for said .ribs being provided 'A Aon saidface plates, reinforcing springs having their innerends inserted-between said ribs and bosses .and their-outer portions engaging the spokes to reinforce the same, substantially as specied.

l In a vehicle wheel, the combination of a rin'i and a hub, said lrub being provided with oppositely-'located face` lates, each 'ofi said plates being provided Wit a `flange having recesses therein forthe reception of the inner ends of the spokes,'ribs proj ectin from the barrel of the hub and Serving, Wit said flanges, to space the face plates apart, spokes o eratively connected to said rimiandhaving. t eir inner ends extending through said: recesses, and reinforcing members for said spokes having their inner ends fitted between said ribs and their .outer ends projecting throu h said recesses and V'engaging said' spokes, su stantially as specified.

16. Ina vehicleiwheel, the combination' of a rim and ahub,A a series of reversely-curved spokes extending between said rim and hub,

and a pair of reinforcing springs for each of saidspokes, one of said springs eing secured to the ri'm and engaging the. adjacent convex surface of the s oke and being substantially coextensive 'wit such surface andthe other s rin being secured to the hub and enga the adjacent convex surface of the spoke an being substantially coextensive with such surface. 4

l17. In a, vehicle wheel, the combination of a rim and a hub,V a series of spokes extending l therebetween, said spokes having theirlouter end portions curved to conform to the curvature of the rim and the (portions adjacentto said end portions curve away from the rim,

and a, reinforcing leaf spring foreach of said spokes, each of said springs being securedto said rim and conforimn 1n shape to tlie'end4 portion of the spoke an engagin the curved portion of the spoke adj acent'to t e rim, each ofl said springs being rovided with a sto at the-outer end thereo for the correspon "n end of the spoke, and means for securing sai spokes/and-sprin sto the rim.

18. .In a velnfc e Wheel,` the combination of a rim and a hub., aseries'of'reversely curved'. spokes' extending between said rim and hub,.

roo

.and a pair of reinforcing sp s for. eachy of i saidspoke's, one of said springs eing secured to the rim and engiaging the adjacent convex.

surface ofthe ls' o e and being substantially coextensiv'e'wit' such surface and the other sprin beingsecnred'to the lhub and engaging 't e-a jacent convex surface of the's oke an being substantially coextensive with such surface, each of said'springs having a greater curvature than that vof the corresponding surface of the spoke. j

A/In testimony whereof I affix my signature in the presence of 'two witnesses.

` JOI-IN R. WELCH. Witnesses: y

'Jos-EPH EJEFF-RIES, WILLIAM F. SrmsoN. 

